SAP Implementation Project

ballooba

Have an interview on friday AM.

The job is as a software tester on a SAP implementation project.

What is a 'SAP implementation project'?

Googled it and didn't find anything coherent.

RicardoSmith

Basically they are installing SAP (you know what that is yeah?) into a company somewhere. Has to be customised for the company and all the company data entered into it. I guess they'l have you testing that it all works as intended.

Basically implementation is a BIG install and rollout of a big application.

Kernel32

If you get the position try and learn as much about SAP as you can. SAP, Peoplesoft, Oracle Financials, they are big money skills to have.

ballooba

what programming languages, databases, OS does SAP use?

or can it use a variety?

thanks for the replies.

RicardoSmith

I'm sure it can hook into most DB but it has its own scripting language I think, but I'm only quessing. I'm sure the SAP site would tell you.

mazza

I did a bit of testing on SAP a while back - it was only a short term contract, so my knowledge is somewhat limited, but here goes...

Basically, SAP will probably run in a browser on the users PC connecting to a server within the company network - it'll allow users within the company to manage customer relationships, sales, maybe bills etc (that kinda thing). Takea look at the SAP site for more info...

SAP develop a front-end control which basically takes up the full browser client area and displays the usual text boxes, listboxes, radio buttons, text as you'd expect to see on a business application. So, AFAIK, this is a proprietary control - you can't 'View Source' in the browser and see HTML (I may be wrong on that though). It is broadly speaking the same principle as an ActiveX control or a Java applet embedded in a web page.

So, the users within the company interact with the app in their browser which writes the data back to a central database (usually Oracle or something industrial strength).

When you buy SAP you get a basic toolkit of functionality - your developers can then customize / build on this functionality to suit the needs of your business. Some of this functionality is 'dragged and dropped' from a toolbar within the SAP development environmentAll this development needs to be tested of course - that's where you come in!

I'd say a lot of the testing will be focussed on data integrity. I don't know what the specific implementation will be dealing with, but you'd be testing stuff like:

<don't quote any of this verbatim please - they are just generic examples of C(ustomer) R(elationship ) M(anagement) application testing scenarios)

- can I set up a new customer in SAP? Is the data correctly displayed next time I come in? What happens if two customers of the same name are created? Does the system handle them correctly? Does each customer get a unique reference number?

- can I create an action (for example, the customer paying a bill) for the customer? Is the bill payment noted correctly? Does the customer's balance get decremented?

- there would also be automatic events which occur in the system: does a customer become a 'Gold Star' customer if they spend $100,000 for example? If they don't pay their bill, do they get a warning letter? Are the customer included in the monthly reports if appropriate?

- different SAP user types (i.e. people within the company using the system) also exist and need to be tested. For example, that a bog standard user can't change data from another user (a team lead should do that), that only a supervisor or person with other suitable rights can generate reports, that only an administrator can create new SAP users on the system. etc etc

Try to think of scenarios which could occur when you deal with everyday utilities and what happens at their end to think of scenarios. e.g. when you get an 'overdue' letter for your phone bill, when you call the bank to ask for info on a loan etc etc.

Have you ever worked in testing before? If so, many of the scenarios should spring readily to mind? If you have any other experience testing Web apps or business apps play it up BIG TIME as dealing with SAP really isn't any different to that at all.

I'll be online Thursday day if I can answer any other questions - otherwise let us know how it went!

Good luck!!!

PS Remember I am not an expert in this at all, but the broad brushstrokes above should be correct!!!

Mazza

ballooba

Its a work placement so I don't think they would expect testing experience.

The people im up against don't any way.

The SAP system i will be working on will have Call Centre, Sales, Billing among others (i reckon).

Would you say the job would be fairly boring? Do you learn anything?

RicardoSmith

Originally posted by ballooba
...
Would you say the job would be fairly boring? Do you learn anything?

Testing isn't one of the worlds most exciting jobs no. But in a big project you will get to see a lot of the issues and the atention to detail that is required in a project like this. There may be other opportunities that will arise from contacts you make. Somethiing like 90% of jobs are found through people you know. But if you ask lots of questions and try to learn yes I reckon you will learn stuff.

Just don't sit on your butt and take it easy. That would be a waste of time.

mazza

It ain't the most exciting job in the world, but as Ricardo said its very much what you make of it.

You can learn loads, you can use it as a springboard to other things, you can make a good living from it (I do!) - but you've got to be enthusiastic and work for it.

Its only a work placement, but if you want to do development work or something more 'sexy' than testing then I'd go and do that instead - bored testers are bad testers. If you had a pick of placements and work, what would you do?

BTW, I wouldn't be too sure of myself that the other candidates for the role don't know anything about testing. All it would take is one guy who did a bit of programming at home and can describe how he tested the app himself and the bugs he encountered along the way and you could be the guy in 2nd place. In my experience, if you are not pushing yourself in the interview and feel too comfortable in your chances, then you are unlikely to succeed.

You might want to think of angles like this yourself to mention at interview...

ballooba

Ideal Placement
To be honest I don't know what I would like to be doing.

For the last couple of years I have been focusing on web type stuff.

I run a small ad agency for advertising events in DIT (via email to 4,000 students and via website http://entslink.com).

I would love to be doing something like that but I don't know if there is a future in it.

Interview tomorrow
Thanks for your input here I kind of have a picture in my mind of what an SAP interface would look like and what sort of test scenarios I would be using.

I presume that existing applications will be integrated into the new system. This is probably where a lot of the testing will be.

I had an important UNIX exam this morning which has been at the forefront of my agenda this week. Thats over now which means I can concentrate on the interview preps. First time not going out mid week in three years I think (except exam time!!).

jesus_thats_gre

I think it would be handy to realise that SAP is the biggest software company in Europe and is third in the world behind Microsoft and Oracle. This have the mjority share in the enterprise software market (something like 70%) with the likes of Peoplesoft, Oracle, Siebel and Microsoft sharing the scraps...

They offer enterprise wide solutions for CRM, ERP, Supply Chain Management, Human Resources and so on... I done alot of stuff on the theorethical on these sorta systems last year in college and good mate from the course got a job with SAP doing support/optimisation work for them, I will see if I can get him to post somethig for you actually!